The invention relates to rotary reeds having a plurality of first fabric beat-up discs arranged in axially spaced relation on a central reed shaft, and sets of second leno discs disposed on opposite sides of the fabric discs for guiding leno warp threads. The peripheries of the successive discs along the read axis exhibit angularly offset recesses which cooperate to establish a helical weft-receiving passage, which receive picks of weft in interleaved relation with the guided warp threads and which, during rotation of the read beat-up the inserted weft into a fabric fell.
The fabric selvedges below the respective sets of leno discs on the read shaft are each conventionally strengthened by axially spaced leno weaves. The outermost, or reinforcing, leno weave in the selvedge is spaced by a warp-free zone from the main or fabric selvedge, so that the auxiliary selvedge may be severed therefrom by a weft cutter which is positioned along the warp-free zone, so that ultimately the main leno weave is left to secure the final fabric selvedge.
In these arrangements, warp-confining chamfers are provided in the peripheral edges of at least some of the leno discs in each set to help guide the leno warp threads into the proper channels between the discs.
A disadvantage of known leno disc set arrangements is that the discs are constructed and arranged in a relatively complicated way, e.g., each set includes four discs, three being of different construction. Additionally, in such designs the warp-free zone between the main and reinforcing leno weaves is established by the thickness of one of the intermediate leno discs in the set, so that changes in such warp-free zone must be accomplished by physically substituting another leno disc having a peripheral edge construction similar to that of the first disc but of altered thickness. Additionally, the change of thickness of the intermediate leno disc requires that the spacing between the main fabric disc be correspondingly altered.